LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) - A popular automaker is being sued over its vehicle assistance program.
Guy Coss filed the class action lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on Feb. 10 against Hyundai claiming its Blue Link Telematics System is rendered permanently disabled if the owner of the vehicle lets the subscribed services lapse for a year.
The Blue Link system allows owners to remotely access some vehicle functions, get emergency assistance and receive self-diagnostic vehicle reports. Hyundai first installed the Blue Link system in its 2012 model year vehicles.
The equipment was put in as standard equipment, but vehicle owners have to pay for the service after a free trial expires. Hyundai allegedly told vehicle owners who had let their service lapse and didn't have it reactivated by Jan. 15 that the Blue Link system would be permanently disabled.
New equipment, costing a minimum of $500, would be needed if the owner or a future owner of the vehicle would want to reactivate the system, the suit says.
The lawsuit claims Hyundai never told owners that the system would need to be replaced if deactivated for more than a year. The suit further claims the move unfairly lowers the value of the vehicle if an owner wants to sell it.
The suit claims the move amounts to a breach of contract terms, which includes the Blue Link System as a standard feature. The lawsuit seeks class status, more than $5 million in damages plus court costs.
Coss is represented by Richard D. McCune, David C. Wright and Jae K. Kim of McCue Wright, LLP, Redlands, Calif.
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California case number 2:15-cv-00974.